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What happens when you combine annual hours of sunshine and total rainfall into a single map of the UK? You get this fascinating and visually striking creation, courtesy of the brilliant data visualization skills of the Twitter user @VictimOfMaths.

At first glance, this map might look like an abstract painting, but it actually tells an intriguing story about the UK’s weather.

The color scheme—a gradient from sunny yellows to rainy blues—highlights the interplay between how much sunshine and rain different areas received throughout the year.

The Sunshine vs Rain Showdown: UK Weather in a Single MapPin
The Sunshine vs Rain Showdown: UK Weather in a Single Map

The sunny hues of gold and orange dominate parts of southeastern England, signaling drier and brighter days.

Meanwhile, the deeper blues soak Scotland, Wales, and the Lake District, reflecting their wetter and gloomier reputations.

And then there are those in-between zones of muted beige and gray, where neither sun nor rain took full control, embodying the quintessentially British phrase: “It’s a bit of both, really.”

Looking closer, some patterns seem to stand out.

For instance, East Anglia’s golden glow suggests it enjoyed a relatively sun-drenched year, while the west of Scotland—no surprises here—appears to have been drenched in a different way.

Scotland, in particular, seems to be a stronghold of the rainy blues, with the west and highland regions bearing the brunt of the precipitation.

Yet, there’s an undeniable charm to this—those dramatic landscapes wouldn’t be the same without their misty, rain-fed beauty.

A misty autumn morning at sunrise on Loch Ard in the Trossachs National ParkA misty autumn morning at sunrise on Loch Ard in the Trossachs National ParkPin
A misty autumn morning at sunrise on Loch Ard in the Trossachs National Park in Scotland

The east coast of Scotland, however, shows hints of lighter tones, suggesting it fared slightly better in the sunshine stakes compared to its western counterpart.

What’s particularly brilliant about this visualization is how it condenses two complex variables into an easy-to-understand graphic.

It’s not just data; it’s art.

The interplay of sunshine and rainfall is key to understanding the UK’s geography, agriculture, and even its mood. Think of how these weather patterns influence everything from local accents to tea-drinking habits (hot, sweet, and copious in the rainier zones, perhaps?).

But the map also raises some fun questions:

  • Is the grass greener in the blue areas because of all that rain, or do the sunny spots have an advantage in growing Instagram-worthy wildflower meadows?
  • Do the residents of Aberdeen and Norwich feel justified in their eternal rivalry over who has better weather?
  • And what about the Isle of Man’s curious little sunshine oasis in the Irish Sea? Microclimate magic, perhaps?

Ultimately, this map captures the UK’s essence: unpredictable, diverse, and often a source of good-natured complaint.

Whether you’re a fan of golden rays or moody rain showers, there’s something here for everyone to appreciate—and maybe even argue about.

So, grab a cup of tea and ponder: Where does your favorite spot fall on the sun-to-rain spectrum?

Sources:

Author: https://x.com/VictimOfMaths/status/1560179912656539648

Data from the Met Office (Hollis et al.) http://dx.doi.org/10.5285/bbca3267dc7d4219af484976734c9527

Map produced in R. Replication code here: https://github.com/VictimOfMaths/Maps/blob/master/SunVsRain.R

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